Safety base receptacle



March 9, 1937. G. T. KENNEDY SAFETY BASE RECEPTACLE Filed Jan. 27. 1936 wwf MN. w

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Patented Mar. -9, `1937 UNITED STATES PATENT" Vol-"Iflc-E.

SAFETY nscEP'rAcLr-z l Gordon '.l. Kennedy, Canton, Ohio Application Janaary er, 193s, serial Na. 61,026 3 claims..l 01'. 24v-c) The invention relates to base receptacles for the connectionof attachment plugs for attaching lamps or other electricl appliances; and the object of the invention is to provide a continuous 5 base receptacle which may be located entirely around the walls of a room, benches, show cases, counters, etc., and adapted to receive attachment plugs at any point through its length.

' An important object of the invention is to ol() vide a safety base receptacle having a dead fro t produced by providing tortuous passages extending inward from the front face thereof for thereception of exible'plug-in blades of a plug-in device.

` Another and ver'y important object of the in vention is to provide a continuous base'receptacle of this character provided with a dead front so as to prevent a child or other person o'r creature from being injured or shocked by inserting any.l

metallic object into the base receptacle.

A further object is to provide a base receptacle including a strip of insulationmaterial having` spaced continuous parallel slots therein, these slots 'being curved in cross section and having conductor strips located at their inner ends.

A further'object is to provide a special attachment plugfor connection tothe base receptacle, thev attachment plug being provided withflexible metal blades adapted to be 'inserted into the tortuously curved slots of the base receptacle.

Still another object is to provide .a special adaptor plug for connecting the ordinaryform of attachment plug or socket to the base receptacle.

electrically connecting the improved continuous l -base receptacle within the boxl of the ordinary base receptacle.

The above objects, together with others which will be apparent from the accompanying drawing andthe following 'description or which may -be later pointed out, may be attained by constructing the improved base receptacle in the A still further object is to Iprovide vmeans for Fig. 4, an elevation of the inner side of the improved attachment plug;

Fig. 5, a transverse section through a slightly modied form of the continuous base receptacle;

Fig. 6, a fragmentary sectio al elevation showing the manner of connecting he conductor strips together; 1

Fig. '7, a transverse sectional View through an adaptor by means of which'the ordinary form of attachment plug may be used with the improved base receptacle; and

Fig. 8, an elevatiomof the outer side of said adaptor. Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawing.

The improved base receptacle is formed of 'strips'of sufficient lengthto extend around the wallsror baseboard of a room, being connected to said walls, baseboard or the-like, and housing a. spaced pair of continuous yelectric conductors. The receptacle includes a strip indicated generallyat I0, preferably formed of insulation'material and provided with a longitudinal central depression to receive the outer strip Il which may also be of insulation material. y l

A longitudinal rib l2 may be formed upon the strip i0, being located centrally within said longi- Y tudinal depression and. adapted-to fit snugly with: in a corresponding longitudinal recess 'l3- formed in the outer strip Il, the two strips being connected together as by screws H or the like.

The contours of the strips I0 and Il are suchthat when connected together as shown in Figs. .1, 2, and 5, two spaced longitudinal grooves or slots I5 are formed in the front face of the continuous base receptacle, each of these slots being tortuously curved inward whereby portions of the cross section of the slots are in planes dei'lning a dihedral angle, as shown in Figs. 2 and .5.

A conductor of copper, brass or other sui-table material is enclosed within the inner portion of each of the Vcurved grooves` or slots I5. Each of these conductors is in the form of a folded strip open towards its outer edge to receive and clamp the blades of the attachment plugs.

These conductorstrips may be of any suitable or desirable cross sectional shape, two preferred forms being illustrated at I6 in Fig. 2 and at' IBa. in Fig. 5, and have sufcientjspring therein to tightly clamp and hold the blades of the attach-A ment plug when they are inserted therein, as

will be later described.

- or rear edge, the sides of, the strip being flat and parallel to each other as at I8, terminating in the outturned forward edge portions I9 to facilitate the insertion of the blades of the attachment plugs. As shown at l6a in Fig. 5, each strip may be bent into U-shaped form, one leg of the.U having the inturned angular flange 20 between which and the other leg the blades of the attachment plug are adapted to be 'received and clamped. For the purpose of electrically connecting the conductor strips I8 or Iliato the house circuit, spaced apertures 2| may be located through the rear side ofthe insulation strip I 0 in staggered relation and on opposite sides of the central rib 15, I2 through which terminals 22 or 22a, as `shown in Figs. 2 and 5 respectively,` may be located.

Each of these terminals is provided at its inner end with a substantially U-shaped portion 23 or 23a, shaped to t snugly around the corresponding conductor strip I6 or I6a and to be soldered or otherwise connected thereto. 'I'he rear or outer ends of the terminals may be angula/rly disposed to t against the back of the strip Ill, as indicated at 24, terminating in an angular angeportion 25 and provided with a binding screw 26 by means of which a wire or cable may be connected thereto. If desired, as shown in Fig. 5, the terminals may extend straight backfin substantially h orizontal position as indicated at 24a terminating .30 in the angular flanges 25a and provided with the binding screws 28a. Such a construction of terminal may be used for connection to the wires or cables within the box of the ordinary base receptacle where the present improved continuous base receptacle is substituted for the ordinary form of base receptacle.

Any suitable means may be provided for electrically connecting together sections of the conductor strips I6 or I6a so that a plurality of strips or sections of the improved base receptacle may beconnected end to end to form a continuous receptacle extending entirely around the walls or baseboard of a room. In Fig. 6 is shown a preferred method of thus electrically connecting sections of the strips I6 by means of a wire or rod 2I having its opposite end `portions in- 'serted into the tubular portions I`I of two abutting sections of the conductor strip I6 and soldered or otherwise firmly connected thereto.

Supplemental to the wire or rod 21, or as an alternative therefor, the conductor strips I6 or I6a may be connected together by U-shaped members such as the U-shaped portions 23 or 23a l shown in Figs. 2 and 5 respectively,/which may 55, be soldered or otherwise connected to the conductor strips, it being of course understood that these U-shaped connecting members would not be provided with -the terminals shown in said figures. A 00 The attachment plug for use with the improved base receptacle is best shown in Figs. 3 and 4 and comprises a block of suitable insulation material `indicated at 28, having a central opening 29 to receive one end of the usual electric cord 65 such as is ordinarily provided upon lamps and other electric appliances. The rear 'or inner side of the insulation block 28 may be recessed as at 30 to receive the plug-in blades 3l and the binding screws 32 by means of which the two wires 70 in the electric cord are connected to the two plug-in blades.

For the purpose of connecting these parts to the rear side of the insulation block 28, metal bars 33 may be imbedded in the block, one above 75 and one below the opening 29, each of these bars having an`integral nut 34 formed at one end placed over the angular end of each blade and` connected to the corresponding bar as by a rivet 38a and the corresponding binding screw 82.

The plug-in blades 3i are formed of any suitlable metal suiciently exible to permit these` blades to be easily flexed as they are inserted into the grooves or slots I5 so as to pass through said grooves or slots and be received and clamped in the conductor strips, as shown in Fig. 2. It should be noted that the slots or grooves I5 are of just sufliclent width to easily receive the plug-in blades, the outer edges only of these slots or grooves being flared as. at lia to facilitate .the insertion of the plug-inblades therein.

Where it is desired to use the usual and ordinary type of attachment plug, an adaptor as shown in Figs. 'Z and 8 may be provided for connection to the improvedbase receptacle and to receive the plug-in points or blades of the ordinary attachment plug. This adaptor includes a block 31 of suitable insulation material having two spaced sockets 38 therein, each of which may house a pair of spring contacts 39 and 40 for contact with the parallel or aligned plug-in points respectively, such as are provided upon the usual and ordinary types of attachment plugs.

An insulation cover plate 4I may be connected to the outer or front side of the adaptor and provided with the T-shaped slots 42 adapted to receive either the parallel or aligned plug-in points of the ordinary attachment plug.

Af-pair of flexible plug-in blades 3Ia, similar to the blades 3l above described, are connected to the rear or inner side of the adaptor and electrically connected with the spring contacts 3,9 and 40 as by the rivets 48. With this construction, it will be seen that the adaptor may be connected to the continuous base receptacle at any desired point in the same manner that the attazhment plug is shown connected thereto in Fig. and any usual and ordinary type of attachment plug may then be -connected to the adaptor. Y

I claim:

1. A base receptacle comprising an insulation member having two spaced longitudinal slots curved in cross section and open to the face of the insulation member, at least aportion of the cross section of the slots being in planes deilning a dihedral angle, and requiring a. plug-in member having flexible plug-in strip blades adapted to enter the slots, and conductors located at the inner ends of the slots for contact with said plug-in blades.

2 'A base receptacle comprising an elongated strip of insulation material, and two spaced sub- 'stantially U-shaped conductor strips enclosed within said insulating strip, .spaced longitudinal 'grooves in said insulation strip communicating ried by said insulation adaptor block and adapted to be 'inserted into said grooves and received in 'said conductor strips, spaced sockets in said insulation adaptor block adapted to receive the plug-in points of an ordinary attachment plug,

and contacts insaid sockets connected to said exible blades.

3. A base receptacle comprising an insulation member having two spaced longitudinal slots open to the face of the insulation membenat least a portion of th cross section of the slots being in planes defining a dihedral angle, a plugin member requiring iiexible plug-in strip blades adapted to enter the slots, conductors located at the inner ends of the slots for contact with said plug-in blades, said insulation strip having a staggered series of spaced openings through its rear side, and a pair of terminals connected to said conductors through the adjacent openings. I

GORDON T. KENNEDY. 

